Use of Minnesota address confidentiality program grows

ST. PAUL, Minn.—The number of crime victims using Minnesota's address confidentiality program has grown steadily since it began nearly seven years ago.

The program allows victims to use a substitute address to prevent abusers, stalkers and other perpetrators from knowing where they live. The Secretary of State's office, which administers the program, says 111 participants enrolled in Safe at Home in 2008. That number has grown to 1,622 in 2013, including 900 children.

A total of nearly 3,200 people from every county in the state have used the program since it started.

Safe at Home participants use a P.O. Box address for all of their interactions with private and public entities, making it difficult for offenders to locate them.

Safe at Home program information is available on the Secretary of State website.